Sam Walton was never one to play it by the book. He learned the rules that applied to his business environment, then broke the ones he found nonsensical.
His courage to go against the grain and follow his convictions are two things that catapulted Walmart and Sam’s Club to growth and success.
The Life Story of Sam Walton
Sam Moore Walton founded Walmart in 1962, a time when most retail stores targeted large metropolitan cities and towns in the United States.
No one cared to serve small towns with minimal traffic since the sales and margins would be lower.
Walton held the conviction that such locations could generate enough traffic to make a retail business profitable. It took a lot of learning and pivoting, but he managed to grow Walmart without worrying about competition.
“One person seeking glory doesn’t accomplish very much.” – Sam Walton
Birth and Childhood Life
Thomas Walton and Nancy Lee welcomed Samuel Moore Walton, known as Sam Walton, to the world on March 29, 1918.
Sam’s father worked as a farmer but later became a farm mortgage insurance agent after realizing that farming did not provide enough income to support his family.
Sam’s parents had a second son, James Walton (born 1921), after which the family relocated to Missouri.
Sam and James grew up in this state and then moved to Columbus, Missouri, during the Great Depression. As the eldest in a family of two boys, Sam felt compelled to work and help his parents steer through the difficult period.
He milked the family cow, distributed the milk to customers, distributed newspapers, and sold magazine subscriptions.
Education
Sam Walton attended elementary and junior high school in Shelbina, Missouri. During the eighth grade, he was named the youngest Eagle Scout in Missouri.
Walton later attended David H. Hickman High School, where he not only prospered in studies but also thrived in sports. Walton became the quarterback for his school’s football team while still working part-time to help support his family. Upon graduation in 1936, his classmates dubbed him “the most versatile boy.”
After high school, Walton enrolled at the University of Missouri to pursue an undergraduate degree in economics. Being a versatile kid, he joined numerous clubs and secret campus societies.
He became president of Burall Bible Class and joined Scabbard and Blade, a national military honor society. Walton graduated in 1940, during which his class voted him permanent president.
Even though Sam Walton was one of the richest men in America, he drove a red Ford pickup.
Early Career in the Retail Business
Following his studies, Walton worked as a management trainee with J. C. Penney Company in Des Moines, Iowa. He worked in this company for approximately 18 months, earning $75 per month.
Walton resigned in 1942 and enlisted to join the US military during World War II. He was positioned in the US Army Intelligence Corps, where he climbed to the rank of an army captain and left in 1945.
Walton saved up $5,000 from his time in the US military. He borrowed $20,000 from his father-in-law and acquired a Ben Franklin variety store in Newport, Arkansas.
This venture was his first experience as a manager and owner of a retail store.
At the time, there were thousands of variety stores, most serving customers in largely populated cities. Walton found his edge over other stores by offering better prices and setting up outlets close to people’s homes.
This way, his customers would have little incentive to travel to the cities to shop.
In his lifetime, Walton opened 1,735 Wal-Marts, 212 Sam’s Clubs, and 13 Supercenters.
In just three years, annual sales grew from $80,000 to $125,000, which caught the attention of P.K. Holmes, his landlord.
Desiring the same level of success for himself and his son, Holmes denied Walton a new lease agreement. He forced Walton out of business and bought all his inventory for $50,000. Although painful, Walton learned from this experience and worked on negotiating better lease agreements with landlords.
Walton purchased a new store in Bentonville, Arkansas, and opened it for business on May 9, 1950.
He teamed up with his brother and son to scout for other store locations, seeing that the Bentonville store was growing faster than he anticipated.
Walton opened a second store in 1954 at Ruskin Heights, Kansas City, Missouri, and 14 other stores by 1962. Despite having achieved such high success, his journey in the retail business was far from over.
“Most of us don’t invent ideas. We take the best ideas from someone else.” – Sam Walton
Founding Walmart
In 1962, Sam Walton opened the first discount store in Rogers, Arkansas, and named it Wal-Mart Discount City. His goal was to set up stores in smaller towns instead of large cities with plenty of traffic.
He wanted his stores to be a stone’s throw away from customers to reduce their incentive to go to cities for their needs.
Walton also authorized Walmart to sell goods at a discounted price and focused on lowering logistics costs and working with inexpensive suppliers.
By 1977, Walmart had 190 stores in the United States. This number quadrupled to 800 by 1985, thus making Walmart the largest retail store in the world.
Walton took Walmart public in 1970 at $16.50 per share. Today, Walmart trades at $142.15 per share. Walton set up his company to grow in his absence.
He trained his children to take over the company and stepped down as CEO in 1988. His children are today one of the wealthiest people in the world.
“Loosen up, and everybody around you will loosen up.” – Sam Walton
Founding Sam’s Club
Walton founded Sam’s Club, now a subsidiary company of Walmart, in 1983.
This membership-only wholesale company has more than 600 warehouse clubs in the United States today. It is the second-largest wholesale club in sales volume after Costco Wholesale.
Walton also opened Supercenters that contained grocery outlets and were more extensive than standard-sized Walmart stores.
Personal Life
Walton maintained a humble life, despite being wildly successful.
He drove a 1985 Ford Pickup and resided in the same house he lived in before founding Walmart. Forbes named him the wealthiest man in America in 1985.
Outside work, Walton enjoyed hunting and engaging in outdoor activities. He married Helen Robson in 1943 on Valentine’s Day.
The couple had four children, Samuel Robson (born 1944), John Thomas (born 1946), James Carr (born 1948), and Alice Louise (born 1949).
“Celebrate your successes. Find some humor in your failures.”- Sam Walton
The Death of Sam Walton
Walton passed away on April 5, 1992, after suffering from multiple myeloma, a blood cancer.
At the time of his death, there were approximately 1,960 Walmart stores with nearly 380,000 employees.
Walmart was also three months away from its 30th anniversary. Annual sales amounted to $50 billion.
Walton was buried in Bentonville Cemetery. He left the ownership and management of Walmart to his wife and children, who are now among the wealthiest in the United States.
Rob Walton became chairman, while John Walton became director. The Walton family has a total net worth of approximately $224 billion, according to the 2022 Forbes list.
“Appreciate everything your associates do for the business.” – Sam Walton
Closing Thoughts: Aim High Like Sam Walton
Sam Walton was not a genius in any form or fashion. He was, however, an astute businessman who could see opportunities between the cracks of the American retail business environment.
His trust in his intuition and willingness to learn and pivot from failure helped him succeed in the cutthroat world of retail.
Walton held high standards for both himself and his staff. He made Walmart so successful that his descendants are still the wealthiest in the world after two generations.
Sam Walton Timeline
Sam Walton Timeline1918:
Sam Walton is born in Kingfisher, Oklahoma.
1940:
Walton graduates from the University of Missouri with an undergraduate degree in economics. He gets a job at J. C. Penney Company.
1942:
Walton resigns from J. C. Penney and joins the US Army.
1943:
Walton marries Helen Robson on Valentine’s Day.
1944:
Walton and Helen have their first child, Samuel Robson.
1945:
Walton gets honorably discharged from the US Army and purchases a variety store.
1946:
Walton and Helen have their second child, John Thomas.
1948:
Walton and Helen have their third child, James Carr.
1949:
Walton and Helen have their fourth and final child, Alice Louise.
1950:
Walton purchases a Bentonville variety store and opens it for business on May 9th.
1962:
Walton opens Wal-Mart Discount City (later renamed Walmart) and sets up the first store in Rogers, Arkansas.
1970:
Walton takes Walmart public at $16.50 per share.
1983:
Walton opens Sam’s Wholesale Club, later renamed Sam’s Club.
1985:
Forbes names Sam Walton the wealthiest person in the United States.
1988:
Sam Walton steps down as CEO of Walmart.
1992:
Walton passes away of multiple myeloma.
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Lessons From Sam Walton
There are many lessons you can learn from Sam Walton. A few appealed to me, which I have included in this post along with my comments.
Lesson one: Sam Didn’t Have All The Answers, But he Knew Where to Get Them!
Sam Walton had a reputation for spending time on the store floor and listening to employees.
He asked them what they thought about the business and what the customers were experiencing.
This is an excellent idea. If you’re running a company, some of your most important information will come from people on the front lines.
People in operations may know more about them than you because that’s where they spend their time, and they’re the ones that can identify problems or opportunities.
I often see entrepreneurs, managers, and CEOs who depend on upper management’s inside information.
In fact, you should listen to them, but if you want to get the real story of what’s going on, you have to get that information from people on the front lines.
The same applies to your customers. You have to deal with them directly to understand where you can improve in areas with a problem and identify growth opportunities.
Sam Walton didn’t have all the answers, but he did know how to get them by talking with people in his organization. It’s a valuable lesson we can all take to heart.
Lesson Two: Let Your Team Know Your Appreciation.
Appreciation goes a long way. When you show appreciation to your employees, they will work harder for you and be more engaged in their day-to-day tasks.
Have you ever worked very hard and didn’t even receive a thank you or your boss’s acknowledgment that they appreciated your work?
How did that make you feel?
To make sure his employees knew he valued their contribution, Sam Walton understood this principle and its importance.
Walton wanted to ensure everyone was motivated and felt like they were a part of the Walmart team.
So, to empower his employees, he would do whatever he could to build their confidence.
This mentality from a business owner results in the development of a positive workplace culture.
The stronger your team, the more dedicated they are, and the stronger your business.
There’s only so much you can do alone as a business owner, but with a strong team and a positive workplace culture, you will be proud of your business and team.
Lesson Three: Exceed Expectations
The third lesson you can benefit from Sam Walton is to exceed your customer’s expectations.
Exceeding expectations isn’t easy, but at the same time, it doesn’t have to be something where you’re losing money with every sale to exceed customer expectations.
Just like in the example above, showing appreciation for your employees, you can do the same for your customers.
Small things can make a difference. Some examples include:
- Writing on customer’s receipts with phrases like we appreciate your business, thanks for dropping by, etc.
- Ask customers if there’s something you can do to improve their experience.
- Creating a customer loyalty program.
- Speaking with customers and getting to know them.
- Offering customer appreciation days.
The ideas are endless. You have to put your mind to it, and you’ll create ways to show appreciation for your customers.
Appreciation goes a long way, whether it’s to your employees, your customers, or friends and family.
There are even unspoken ways to show appreciation: by providing the best product, service, and value to your customers while making a profit.
Naturally, you need profit to survive in business, but always put your customers before your profits, even if it means you’re making a little bit less but improving the value.
In the long run, the value you provide will build a strong, sustainable company.
Lesson Four Control Your Expenses
With all the money that Sam Walton made, he didn’t let it get to his head. When you keep your expenses in check, your business has a better chance to recover during hard times.
When you’re in business and times are good, it’s easy to spend a lot of money in areas that don’t benefit the business.
However, spending lavishly becomes tempting when things are good for a business owner, and you no longer struggle to survive.
The problem is that lavish spending becomes a habit, and you may be in a cycle where you’re spending more than your profit.
When it comes to business, your expenses must be controlled, and you have to watch what you’re spending your money on because you never know what can happen.
Many things can happen beyond your control; a disaster hits, a pandemic or the stock market crashes, etc.
When times are good, it’s a great time to save. But, of course, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t spend money on yourself or benefit from your success, but instead, keep a level head and your expenses in check.
Frequently Asked Questions
The information in this post answers many of the questions about Sam Walton. This section provides a summary and any additional information.
1. Was Sam Walton the richest man in the world?
Sam Walton became the wealthiest man in America in 1985, according to Forbes. He maintained this position for a few years before being surpassed by John Kluge in 1990.Â
2. Does the Walton family still own Walmart?
The Walton family is currently the major shareholder of Walmart.
3. How did Sam Walton make his money?
Sam made his wealth by owning, managing, and running variety and discount stores. The majority of his wealth came from Walmart.
4. Is the Walton family richer than Jeff Bezos?
Yes, the Walton family is richer than Jeff Bezos. The Walton family has a total net worth of $224 billion as of 2022, while Jeff Bezos has $109.3 billion.Â
5. Who is the richest Walmart heir?
The richest Walmart heir is Jim Walton, with $66.9 billion. The second wealthiest is Alice Walton, with $66 billion, followed by S. Robson Walton ($65.7 billion).Â
6. How did Sam Walton die?
Sam Walton died of multiple myeloma, a blood cancer, in 1992.
7. Where is Sam Walton buried?
Sam Walton is buried in Bentonville Cemetery in Bentonville, Arkansas.Â
8. Was Sam Walton in the military?
Yes, he joined the US military from 1942 to 1945 during World War II.
9. How many siblings did Sam Walton have?
Sam Walton had only one sibling, James Lawrence Bud Walton.
“There is only one boss. The customer. And he can fire everybody in the company from the chairman on down, simply by spending his money somewhere else.” – Sam Walton
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